No more tea that’s too weak or too strong. Brewing the perfect cup is suddenly a whole lot easier and tastier. And it could only have happened in Victoria, home to one of the most important tea festivals in the world and truly the tea capital of Canada.

It’s always tea time in Victoria

The Victoria Tea Festival, which wrapped up on February 19, had its inception in 2007 with 200 people attending the one-day event. Now having completed its sixth year and experienced phenomenal growth, the Victoria Tea Festival has grown to two days and established itself as the largest public tea exhibition in North America.

More than 3,300 people and greater than 40 exhibitors were at the 2012 event, making it the largest public exhibition of its kind in North America. Naturally, Silk Road was there making a splash with its innovative cup that delighted visitors.

It’s been a long and interesting road going from conception, to the planning stages for the teacup and then finally to the biggest tea festival in North America. A road that began, funny enough, in Finland.

Cubelic was contacted by a Finnish designer, Laura Bougdanos, who had the idea but needed someone with expertise in tea to refine it.

When she saw Bougdanos’ rough sketch, she immediately realized how revolutionary it was.

“As soon as I saw it, I was like ‘this is fantastic,’ I was just totally blown away by how simple and yet innovative the concept was,” said Cubelic, who likens it to the invention of the teapot in the 1500s and more recently the tea ball.

But the TipCup, manufactured by Finnish company Magisso, has several more features. There’s no handle; the cup is double-walled so it won’t burn your hands, and most important the tea stays hot.

The cup is also wider at the top than the bottom, allowing more of its wonderful aroma to envelope you as you sip.

That of course is the best part — you don’t have to worry or think about all the engineering that goes into making the perfect tea cup. All you have to do is sip.

About the Author

Vacay

Vicky is the worldly publisher of Vacay.ca. Having graduated from McGill University in Montreal, she has set about building a talented team of travel experts to deliver to you words and images of the very best places to see and experience in Canada. Based in Yorkville in Toronto, Vicky regularly jet sets around Canada — be sure to catch up with her when she's in your part of the country.